Groupama 3 this morning set a record for the fastest passage between Cape Agulhas and Cape Leeuwin with the giant trimaran continuing to make up ground on round the world record pace.

On crossing the line marking the longitude of Cape Leeuwin (115° 08' E) at 04:17:47 UTC this Monday 22 February, Groupama 3 has obtained the best time over the section of course between Cape Agulhas, which marks the entry into the Indian Ocean, and the SW promontory of Australia: 6 days, 22 hours and 34 minutes.

Good weather, smooth seas and a point in their favour rounds up the latest news for Franck Cammas and his nine crew. At 04:17:47 UTC this Monday morning, Groupama 3 crossed the longitude of Cape Leeuwin, picking up the award for best reference time along the way on this their third Jules Verne Trophy attempt.

Response In Tasmania

This excellent crossing of the largest and toughest section of the Indian Ocean, which will come to an end to the south of Tasmania has, most importantly, enabled Groupama 3 to draw even with the reference time of round the world record holder Orange 2.

With a deficit of just 120 miles, or around four hours, skipper Franck Cammas (FRA) and his crew are fully respecting the goal they set themselves when they began to attack the roaring forties: to go fast without rushing the boat.

Be that as it may, this beautiful section of the Deep South has provided the trimaran with her third best reference time in the Jules Verne Trophy: 5d 15h 23' from Ushant to the equator in November 2009 (second attempt), 7d 02h 22' from the equator to Cape Agulhas in February 2008 (first attempt) and 6d 22h 34' from Cape Agulhas to Cape Leeuwin today...

Next on the agenda is to keep pace with the high speed, which is set to be the case this Monday morning with some almost perfect sailing conditions: organized seas, a stable and steady NW'ly wind of 20 knots, clear skies, a pretty crescent of a moon, the starry vault of heaven in the company of the Southern Cross and spring temperatures!

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